William Bouguereau | L’Orientale à la grenade, 1875

At the close of the 1860s, William-Adolphe Bouguereau’s (1825-1905) reputation had been secured by his masterful portrayals of peasant life in the French countryside.

Yet the artist did not limit himself in sources of inspiration and, like many of his contemporaries, became interested in the people and culture of North Africa and the Middle East.

Konstantin Gorbatov | Boats in a Harbour, 1928

Charmed by Italy’s romantic aesthetics and inspired by its warmth and light, the Post-Impressionist artist Konstantin Ivanovich Gorbatov (1876-1945) created some of his most accomplished paintings while living on the island of Capri in the early 1920s.

Gorbatov and his wife emigrated to Berlin in 1926, but he returned annually to Italy until the beginning of World War II.

The monumental Boats in a Harbour, dated 1928, is an exquisite example of Gorbatov’s strength as a colourist and his bold mastery of light and shadow.

Michele Catti | Landscape painter of the Belle Époque

Michele Catti (1855-1914) was an Italian artist, considered one of the most important Sicilian landscape painters of the Belle Époque.

Catti was born in Palermo on April 5, 1855 to Andrea Catti and Carmela Riotta.

He was the second son in a family of 4 brothers and 3 sisters.

His father, born to Michele Catti and Concetta Natoli of the princely family originally from Patti, belonged to a prominent family of judges and lawyers in the Bourbon administration.

He wanted Catti to also start legal studies in Palermo and was therefore sent to his aunt Sabina Distefano in Palermo, as the family had relocated to nearby Carini.

Camille Pissarro (1830-1903)

Camille Pissarro, in full Jacob-Abraham-Camille Pissarro, painter and printmaker who was a key figure in the history of Impressionism.

Pissarro was the only artist to show his work in all eight Impressionist group exhibitions; throughout his career he remained dedicated to the idea of such alternative forums of exhibition.

Camille Pissarro | White Frost, Woman Breaking Up Wood, 1890

• Painting, art in general, enchants me. It is my life. What else matters? When you put all your soul into a work, all that is noble in you, you cannot fail to find a kindred soul who understands you, and you do not need a host of such spirits. Is not that all an artist should wish for?
• When you do a thing with your whole soul and everything that is noble within you, you always find your counterpart.
• It is only by drawing often, drawing everything, drawing incessantly, that one fine day you discover to your surprise that you have rendered something in its true character.
• Work at the same time on sky, water, branches, ground, keeping everything going on an equal basis... Don't be afraid of putting on colour... Paint generously and unhesitatingly, for it is best not to lose the first impression.

Konstantin Korovin (1861-1939)

Konstantin Alekseyevich Korovin /Russian: Константи́н Алексе́евич Коро́вин was a leading Russian Impressionist painter.

Konstantin was born in Moscow to a merchant family officially registered as "peasants of Vladimir Gubernia".

His father, Aleksey Mikhailovich Korovin, earned a university degree and was more interested in arts and music than in the family business established by Konstantin's grandfather. Konstantin's older brother Sergei Korovin was a notable realist painter.

Thomas Moran | Luminist painter

Thomas Moran (1837-1926) in Bolton, England, not far from Manchester, the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution.

Several generations of the Moran family had worked as handloom weavers in Bolton until the introduction of power looms radically changed the industry.

In 1842/1843, seeking public education for his children and economic opportunity in a new land, Thomas Moran, Sr., journeyed to America.